In early 2009, a 16-year-old girl with mental retardation was slain at the Fairview Developmental Center in Orange County. The state-operated institution didn't tell the public about the deadly assault.

After three years, the California Department of Public Health penalized Fairview in April for its role in the patient's death, issuing a written citation and a $10,000 fine for failing to protect a patient from harm. The developmental center is required under state law to prominently display the citation for the public to see.

But the institution couldn't produce a copy last week, administrators told a California Watch reporter who attempted to review the citation at Fairview.

State regulators have fined 13 hospitals in California for substandard care that could have led to injury or death.

The California Department of Public Health issued the fines Friday and hospitals have a right to appeal the fines within 10 days.

Southwest Healthcare System in Murrieta received its eighth penalty and was ordered to pay $100,000. The hospital is accused of poor monitoring that resulted in the death of a full-term, viable baby delivered at the hospital.

California Department of Public Health (CDPH) director Dr. Ron Chapman warned consumers on Thursday not to eat Taste of Roux, LLC jarred vegetarian soups because they may have been improperly produced, making them susceptible to contamination with Clostridium Botulinum.

A county ordinance passed Tuesday will have enforcement teeth with tough penalties for those who illegally sell tobacco products in unincorporated Monterey County to those under 18. The law will provide for enforcement that state law lacks, proponents said. In 2010, 48 percent of retailers in Monterey County surveyed by the California Department of Public Health illegally sold cigarettes to minors.

The California Department of Public Health is warning people Friday not to eat certain bagged salads manufactured by River Ranch Fresh Foods, LLC because they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. To date, no illnesses have been reported. The recalled salad products were distributed nationwide to retail and food service outlets under various sizes and packaged under the brand names of River Ranch, Farm Stand, Hy-Vee, Marketside, Shurfresh, The Farmer's Market, Cross Valley, Fresh n Easy, Promark, and Sysco.